Equipment

Cobra unveils Limited Edition Tour Trusty Wedge

Published

11 years ago

May 13, 2013

Cobra has announced a limited-edition version of its new “Tour Trusty” wedge, a 1600-club release that gives golfers the chance to play the company’s tour-inspired wedges several months before their full launch in the fall.

The wedge is identical in performance and shape to the retail version of the Tour Trusty wedges that are scheduled to hit shelves on Oct. 1, but it features custom hand stampings on the back of the wedge that were designed by Cobra-Puma Tour Staff Member Rickie Fowler (Click here to see the clubs in Fowler’s bag).

According to Jose Miraflor, director of product marketing for Cobra-Puma, the Tour Trusty wedges were inspired by the company’s Tour Staff, namely Fowler, Jonas Blixt and Ian Poulter. For this reason, the wedges have much less offset, bounce and a straighter leading edge than the company’s current “Trusty Rusty” wedges, which were created with higher handicappers in mind.

The Tour Trusty wedges are cast from 8620 Carbon Steel, and will be available for righties and lefties in odd-numbered lofts from 47 to 63 degrees on Oct. 1 for $119. They’ll be released in two different finishes — Tour Satin Chrome and Matte Black — with True Temper S200 shafts.

The Limited Edition Tour Trusty wedges will be available on June 1 in a 55-degree model with 12 degrees of bounce (right-hand only) in the satin finish with a True Temper S400 Tour Issue shaft for $149.

A Deeper Dive

One of the most eye-catching features of the Tour Trusty wedges is the strip of chrome finish on the rear portion of the sole, which highlights the wedge’s special grind.

Like the Trusty Rusty, the sole has a notch in the back, which Miraflor says is important because it helps the leading edge sit closer to the ground at address. It also works with the heel grind to allow the sole to slide more efficiently through the turf on open-faced shots.

But what he says is equally important is the curvature of the leading edge, which is shaped like the front of a ski to keep the club from “sticking” or digging in the ground.

[quote_box_center]”Most wedges rely on the bounce to do all the work,” Miraflor says. “But the bounce is what gets [a wedge] to come out of the ground. With [the Tour Trusty wedges], we created a leading edge that reduces the amount of digging so it’s a smooth transition into the ground.”[/quote_box_center]

Each wedge is available in only one grind, with the exception of the 55- and 59-degree models, which will come in high- and low-bounce versions. The 55-degree will be available with 8- or 12-degrees of bounce, and the 59-degree with 6- or 10-degrees of bounce, each with different sole configurations to accomodate different angles of attack.

The lower-bounce models will have less camber and less leading edge radius, as well as a wider sole that is designed for golfers with shallower angles of attack. The higher-bounce models will have more camber, more leading edge radius and a narrower sole that is preferred by golfers with more aggressive attack angles.

Note: Camber is the curvature of the sole from front to back. If a wedge has more camber, it has a more “round” sole. Leading edge radius is the visual curvature of the leading edge that is seen from address. More radius means more curvature, and vice versa.

The face of a Tour Trusty wedge.

The Tour Trusty wedges also feature new grooves, which are 100 percent milled and have sharper edges and steeper sidewalls than past modes from Cobra. To add even more zip, the wedges have a half-moon shaped milled face texture that varies the spacing and height of the milling marks to maximize surface roughness within the USGA’s current rules.

Miraflor says that by changing the spacing and heights of the milling marks, the “average roughness” of a wedge faces can be maximized without having to worry about “peak roughness,” two variables that are tracked by golf’s ruling bodies. And because a golf ball touches between four and five grooves on good wedge shots, shots will be exposed to a consistent range of face textures that will normalize spin in the same way as a uniform face texture, he says.

Rickie Fowler has been testing the Tour Trusty with custom grinds since the Word Challenge in December. Click here to see photos and discussion about the 59-degree wedge he was trying at the Zurich Classic of New Orleans, or click here to see what members are saying about the Tour Trusty in the “Tour/Pre-release equipment” forum.

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Equipment

A shocking Backstryke putter appearance + 7 interesting gear photos from the Zurich Classic

Published

14 hours ago

Apr 25, 2024

Andrew Tursky

Welcome to New Orleans, where TPC Louisiana plays host to the 2024 Zurich Classic. In between breakfast beignets and nightly Creole feasts, PGA Tour players are also competing in the unique two-man format at the Zurich this week.

Although the vibes in Nawlins are a bit lighter-fare than the recent back-to-back competitions the Masters and the RBC Heritage signature event), the gear news was no less serious this week.

We spotted some recent changes from Rory McIlroy, a very rare Odyssey Backstryke putter, dove into the bag of legendary New Orleans Saints quarterback Drew Brees, and spotted Patrick Cantlay continuing to test new equipment.

Get your beads out and crack your crawfish, because it’s time for an equipment rundown from The Big Easy (meaning New Orleans, of course, not Ernie Els).

See all of our photos from the Zurich Classic here

Rory’s on-and-off lob wedge

Since the end of 2023, Rory McIlroy has had an on-again, off-again relationship with a Titleist Vokey K-Grind lob wedge. In his last start, it was on, and the wedge is back in the bag again this week. We got a great look at the complicated grind that McIlroy uses.

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A full look into McIlroy’s bag above also shows that he switched out of the TaylorMade BRNR Mini Copper that he used at the RBC Heritage, and he’s back into the Qi10 core 3-wood. As we discussed last week, McIlroy will likely keep the BRNR around as a course-specific club, trading it in and out for the 3-wood.

See Rory McIlroy’s full 2024 WITB from the Zurich here

Turning Back the clock

Unless Tommy Gainey is in the field, it’s unlikely you’ll ever see Odyssey’s Backstryke technology make an appearance on the PGA Tour.

But then, when you least expect it, Russ Cochran shows up.

For more than a decade – since the 2013 Sony Open in Hawai’i – Cochran has been stuck on 599 PGA Tour starts. This week will be his 600th.

Cochran is in the field at the Zurich this week playing alongside Eric Cole, whose regular caddie is Reed Cochran, Russ’s son.

The Backstryke putter was first released back in 2010, and its unique design helps shift the axis point of the putter closer to the CG of the head. And, the putter is getting a nod this week at the Zurich Classic, thanks to Cochran’s 600th career PGA Tour start.

The putter is certainly awesome, but don’t forget to check out Cochran’s full WITB from this week.

Drew Brees with a Super Bowl winning Scotty Cameron putter

Drew Brees, a legendary retired quarterback for the hometown New Orleans Saints, made an appearance at the Zurich’s Wednesday Pro-Am, playing alongside Zach Johnson, Ryan Palmer, and current Saints QB Derek Carr.

Brees’ bag included a TaylorMade Stealth2 Plus driver, a BRNR Mini 13.5-degree, a Stealth 5-wood, a mixed set of P-790 and P-760 irons, Milled Grind Hi-Toe wedges, and a custom Scotty Cameron “New Orleans Saints” putter, which Scotty made for Brees following his Super Bowl MVP-winning performance in 2010.

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It should also be noted that Brees has his Venmo QR code as a bag tag.

If you’re gambling with Brees on the course, just know that not having cash won’t work as an excuse.

Brilliant.

See Drew Brees’ full WITB from the Zurich here

Stricker’s unrecognizable putter

Steve Stricker has made numerous upgrades to his bag recently, including a new TSR3 driver and T100 irons, but his longtime Odyssey White Hot No. 2 putter is still going strong. It’s the most recognizable unrecognizable putter ever.

Here’s a better look at Stricker’s flatstick, which he started using back in 2007.

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Patrick Cantlay has opened the equipment-switching floodgates

Over on the PGA Tour’s Equipment Report this week, we covered Cantlay’s recent switch into Ping Blueprint S irons, and a Titleist TSR2 driver.

Cantlay hadn’t switched irons for about seven years, so the iron switch he made at The 2024 Masters came as a shock to the norm. He simply isn’t one to change gear very often, so anytime Cantlay makes a switch, it’s news.

It seems the floodgates of equipment testing have opened up a bit for Cantlay, who was also spotted testing a custom Scotty Cameron blade putter on Tuesday this week. By Wednesday, Cantlay was back practicing with his familiar Scotty Cameron T5 Proto mallet, but it’s certainly something to keep an eye on going forward.

Daniel Berger’s custom Jailbird site lines

Berger, who’s currently using Odyssey’s Ai-One Mini Jailbird mallet putter, has a unique 3-dot, 2-line alignment on the crown of his navy-white-navy-white mallet putter. Looking down at the putter, it’s easy to see why this alignment system would help; it just seems impossible to set up to the ball off-center, or misaligned to the target.

Also, for anyone worried, you can rest easy. Yes, he’s still playing the 2013 TaylorMade TP MC irons, which we highlighted in our recent “Modern Classics: Old vs. New” video testing series.

FitzMagic teams back up

Brothers Matthew and Alex Fitzpatrick are teaming up once again at the Zurich this year, and Bettinardi Golf hooked them up with some festive “FitzMagic” headcovers to match this week.

See what else is in Alex Fitzpatrick’s WITB here

And, with that, we say goodbye to the Zurich Classic in New Orleans. Don’t forget to check out all of our photos from this week, including 30 unique photo galleries full of equipment photos.

We’ll see you next week in Texas for the 2024 CJ Cup Byron Nelson!

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